Monday, November 10, 2008

AIG Bailout Jumps to $150 Billion

That's right. The insurance group that threw a $440,000 party for its executives after we gave them $85 billion in September has posted a third-quarter loss of $24.5 billion. They're being rewarded with a reworked bailout of $150 billion of tax money. W00t! I wonder how big a party they'll throw this time? I wonder if any taxpayers will be invited? I wonder why we pretend that hard work and honesty are the paths to success?

6 comments:

OrbsCorbs said...

Sorry, but when I think about Veterans Day tomorrow and all the people that I know who have sacrificed so much for this country . . . and then I think about the swine in suits getting manicures on the taxpayers' dime while thousands of working people across the country are laid-off just before the holidays . . . well, it makes my blood boil.

hale-bopp said...

Do I hear $250 billion? Come on,someone give me $250 billion!

Seriously, it's hard to say much more than wow. Even though they supposedly have restrictions on CEO pay in place and all that, most of the people who caused this mess took the payout and got out of dodge already.

I see in your story that the AIG stock price went up 30% on the announcement...think there might be any insider trading going on there?

OrbsCorbs said...

I assume that the usual fat cats get fatter in these schemes and the American people take it in the rump. I just find it harder and harder to live the day-to-day lie that there are some sort of rules or standards, or even sanity, in our economic system. What's the difference between a thug holding up a store and an executive extorting money from the American people? As far as I can see, the differences are a suit and the amount of money stolen. Oh, and the chance that the thug will face justice, but the executive never will.

And of course, the people "overseeing" all of this are politicians; i.e., crooks. It's a free-for-all for pigs at the trough of taxpayer money. Only the already-rich need apply.

SER said...

The people of the United States do not need to pay this “bail out” money; they need to hire a few “hitmen”.

When it’s adiĆ³s to a few of them, the rest just might clean up their act!

Anonymous said...

I'm just waiting for them (or others who will get the $$) to start buying other companies. They are not supposed to do that but the law was passed to quickly to add these features into it. Is is time for a "Boston tea party"?

AvengingAngel said...

These idiots should be thrown in jail.

The worst thing they do is to cause us to distrust ALL corporations. Although they never get any press, there are thousands of corporations in America that treat their people well, make a decent profit, and never get into the kinds of messes that AIG, GM, Ford, and the like get into that cost us billions.

Isn't there some kind of fraud charge the US AG can bring against these idiots?